In dense populations, most planthoppers (Homoptera:Delphacidae) produce fully winged migratory forms that can escape to new habitats. Under less crowded conditions, flightless morphs with reduced wings result. For two sympatric species, Prokelisia marginata and Prokelisia dolus, interspecific crowding was found to be as strong a stimulus for the production of migrants as intraspecific crowding. The effects were reciprocal for both species and were demonstrated both in the laboratory and field. However, because migratory forms were triggered at a much lower density in P. marginata than P. dolus, interspecific interactions were asymmetric, with P. dolus having a far greater influence on the wing form of P. marginata. Interspecific interactions did not directly influence survival, development time, or body size, but reproductive capability was indirectly affected because migratory females are less fecund than their flightless counterparts. Intraspecific crowding adversely affected the survivorship, development time, and body size of P. marginata, but had no influence on the fitness of P. dolus. P. marginata is a much more migratory species than P. dolus. Consequently, mobility is associated with the extent that each species' fitness is reduced by intraspecific crowding. Our results demonstrate that for wing dimorphic insects, the effects of interspecific competition can be extended to include altered wing form, a character that directly influences dispersal capability as well as reproductive potential. We suggest that when wing—dimorphic species share a common habitat, interspecific interactions can influence population dynamics by increasing emigration and decreasing population growth.

Aphids in the genus Hyalopterus Koch (Hemiptera: Aphididae) are pests of stone fruit trees in the genus Prunus globally, causing damage directly through feeding as well as transmission of plant viruses. Despite their status as cosmopolitan pests, the genus is poorly understood, with current taxonomy recognizing two, likely paraphyletic, species: Hyalopterus pruni (Koch) and Hyalopterus amygdali (Blanchard). Here we present a systematic study of Hyalopterus using a molecular phylogeny derived from mitochondrial, endosymbiont, and nuclear DNA sequences (1,320 bp) and analysis of 16 morphometric characters. The data provides strong evidence for three species within Hyalopterus, which confirms previous analyses of host plant usage patterns and suggests the need for revision of this genus. We describe a new species H. persikonus Miller, Lozier & Foottit n. sp., and present diagnostic identification keys for the genus.

Natural history museums are unique spaces for interdisciplinary research and educational innovation. Through extensive exhibits and public programming and by hosting rich communities of amateurs, students, and researchers at all stages of their careers, they can provide a place-based window to focus on integration of science and discovery, as well as a locus for community engagement. At the same time, like a synthesis radio telescope, when joined together through emerging digital resources, the global community of museums (the ‘Global Museum’) is more than the sum of its parts, allowing insights and answers to diverse biological, environmental, and societal questions at the global scale, across eons of time, and spanning vast diversity across the Tree of Life. We argue that, whereas natural history collections and museums began with a focus on describing the diversity and peculiarities of species on Earth, they are now increasingly leveraged in new ways that significantly expand their impact and relevance. These new directions include the possibility to ask new, often interdisciplinary questions in basic and applied science, such as in biomimetic design, and by contributing to solutions to climate change, global health and food security challenges. As institutions, they have long been incubators for cutting-edge research in biology while simultaneously providing core infrastructure for research on present and future societal needs. Here we explore how the intersection between pressing issues in environmental and human health and rapid technological innovation have reinforced the relevance of museum collections. We do this by providing examples as food for thought for both the broader academic community and museum scientists on the evolving role of museums. We also identify challenges to the realization of the full potential of natural history collections and the Global Museum to science and society and discuss the critical need to grow these collections. We then focus on mapping and modelling of museum data (including place-based approaches and discovery), and explore the main projects, platforms and databases enabling this growth. Finally, we aim to improve relevant protocols for the long-term storage of specimens and tissues, ensuring proper connection with tomorrow’s technologies and hence further increasing the relevance of natural history museums.

Integration of ecological and genetic data to study patterns of biological connectivity can aid in ecosystem-based management. Here we investigated connectivity of the Hawaiian grouperEpinephelus quernus, a species of management concern within the Main Hawaiian Islands (MHI), by comparing genetic analyses with simulated larval dispersal patterns across the species range in the Hawaiian Archipelago and Johnston Atoll. Larval simulations revealed higher dispersal from the MHI to the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI) than in the opposite direction and evidence for a dispersal corridor between Johnston and the middle of the Hawaiian Archipelago. Genetic analyses using mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region sequences and microsatellites revealed relatively high connectivity across the Hawaiian Archipelago, with the exception of genetically distinct populations and higher mtDNA diversity in the mid-Archipelago. These analyses support the preservation of the mid-archipelago as a source of genetic diversity and a region of connectivity with locations outside the Hawaiian Archipelago. Additionally, our evidence for directional dispersal away from the MHI lends caution to any management decisions that would rely on the NWHI replenishing depleted MHI stocks.